Match
A
match is a simple and convenient means of producing
fire under controlled circumstances on demand, typically a
wooden or stiff
paper stick coated at one end with a material that will ignite from the heat of
friction if rubbed ("struck") against a suitable surface. There are two main types of matches:
safety matches, which can only be struck against a specially-prepared surface, and
strike-anywhere matches, for which any sufficiently rough surface can be used.
Historically, the term
match referred to lengths of
cord, or later
Cambric, impregnated with chemicals, and allowed to burn continuously. These were used to light fires and set off
guns and
cannon. Such matches were characterised by their burning speed, e.g.
quick match and
slow match; depending on their formulation, they could provide burning rates of between, typically, 4 milliseconds and 15 seconds per centimetre.
The modern equivalent of this sort of match is the simple
fuse, still used in
pyrotechnics to obtain a controlled time delay before ignition. The original meaning of the word still persists in some pyrotechnics terms, e.g.
black match, a
black powder-impregnated fuse, or
Bengal matches, a type of
firework producing a relatively long-burning, coloured flame. When friction matches were developed, however, they eventually came to be the dominant meaning of the term.
A predecessor of the match, small sticks of pinewood impregnated with sulfur, was developed in
China in
577.
The first modern, self-igniting match was invented in
1805 by K. Chancel, assistant to Professor L. J. Thénard of
Paris. The head of the match consisted of a mixture of
potassium chlorate,
sulfur,
sugar, and
rubber. They were ignited by dipping the tip of the match in a small
asbestos bottle filled with
sulfuric acid. This kind of match was quite expensive and its usage was dangerous, so Chancel's matches never gained much popularity.
The first
friction match was invented by English chemist
John Walker in
1827. Early work had been done by
Robert Boyle in the
1680s with
phosphorus and sulfur, but his efforts had not produced useful results. Walker discovered a mixture of
antimony (III) sulfide,
potassium chlorate,
gum, and
starch could be ignited by striking against any rough surface. Walker called the matches
congreves, but the process was patented by Samuel Jones and the matches were sold as
lucifers. The early matches had a number of problems -- the flame was unsteady and the initial reaction was disconcertingly violent; additionally the odour produced by the burning match was unpleasant. The smell is described as a
firework odour. Despite these problems, the new matches were responsible for a marked increase in the number of smokers. Lucifers reportedly could ignite explosively, sometimes throwing sparks at a considerable distance.
In
1831, Frenchman
Charles Sauria added
white phosphorus to remove the smell. These new matches had to be kept in an airtight box but were popular. Unfortunately, those involved in the manufacture of the new matches were afflicted with
phossy-jaw and other bone disorders, and there was enough white phosphorus in one pack to kill a person. There was a vociferous campaign to ban these matches once the dangers became known.
The
match was invented in
1836 by the
Hungarian János Irinyi who was a student of chemistry. In 1836 an unsuccessful experiment by his professor, Meissner, gave Irinyi the idea to replace potassium chlorate with lead dioxide in the head of phosphorous match. He liquefied phosphorus in (warm) water and shook it in a glass foil, until it became granulated. He mixed the phosphorus with lead and
gummi arabicum, poured the paste-like mass into a jar, and dipped the pine sticks into the mixture and let them dry. When he tried them that evening, all of them lit evenly. Irinyi thus invented the
noiseless safety match and sold the invention to István Rómer, a match manufacturer. Rómer, a rich Hungarian pharmacist living in
Vienna, bought the invention and production rights from Irinyi, the poor student, for 60 Forints. The production of matches was now fully underway. István Rómer became rich off Irinyi's invention, but Irinyi himself died poor and abandoned in Vértes.
The early matches, including the
Noiseless match, were dangerous to both the users and the people making them. This was due to the use of white phosphorus.
The search for a replacement for white phosphorus led to what was known as the
safety match. However, this term is now confusing as it covers both the modern safety match and the modern strike anywhere match. These two different types of matches are discussed separately below.
Both of these types of matches were more expensive to make than white phosphorus-based matches; and customers continued to buy white-phosphorus based matches. Laws prohibiting the use of white phosphorus in matches generally had to be passed before these safer types of matches came into widespread usage.
Finland banned white-phosphorus based matches in
1872;
Denmark in
1874;
Sweden in
1879;
Switzerland in
1881 and
Holland in
1901.
An agreement, the
Berne Convention, was reached at
Berne, Switzerland, in
1906 to prohibit the use of white phosphorus in matches. This required each country to pass laws prohibiting the use of white phosphorus in matches.
Great Britain passed a law in
1908 prohibiting its use in matches after
31 December 1910. The
USA did not pass a law, but instead placed a punitive tax on white-phosphorus based matches in
1913.
India and
Japan banned them in
1919; and
China in
1925.
|
Household safety matches, including one burnt match |
|
A box of matches, some of which are greatly prized by phillumenists |
The
safety match was invented in
1844 by the Swede
Gustaf Erik Pasch and improved by
John Edvard Lundström a decade later.
Their safety is due to the separation of the combustible ingredients between the match head and a special striking surface, and the replacement of white phosphorus with
red phosphorus. The striking surface is composed of powdered
glass and red phosphorus, and the match head was composed of
antimony(III) sulfide and
potassium chlorate. The act of striking converts some of the red phosphorus to white by friction heat. The small amount of white phosphorus then ignites, and this starts the combustion of the match head.
The two Lundstrom brothers had obtained a sample of red phosphorus from
Arthur Albright at
The Great Exhibition, held at
The Crystal Palace in
1851, and made safety matches with it. They misplaced the matches and did not try them until just before the
Paris Exhibition of
1855. They were still usable.
The Swedes long held a virtual world-wide
monopoly on safety matches, with the industry mainly situated in
Jönköping. They sold their French safety match
Patent to Coigent père & Fils of
Lyon, but Coigent contested the payment in the French courts, on the basis that the invention was known in Vienna before the Lundström brothers patented it. The British match manufacturer
Bryant and May visited Jönköping in
1858 to try to obtain a supply of safety matches but were unsuccessful. In
1862 they set up their own
factory and bought the rights for the British safety match Patent from the Lundström brothers.
Safety matches are classed as
Dangerous goods, U.N. 1994, and are not forbidden on
aircraft, but must be declared as Dangerous Goods.
Two
French chemists, Savene and Cahen developed a safety match using
phosphorus sesquisulfide and proved that phosphorus sesquisulfide was not poisonous, it could be used in a "strike anywhere" match and the match heads were not explosive. They patented a safety match composition in
1898 based on phosphorus sesquisulfide and potassium chlorate.
Albright and Wilson developed a safe means of making commercial quantities of phosphorus sesquisulfide in
1899 and started selling it to match makers.
In
1901 Albright and Wilson starting making phosphorus sesquisulfide at their
Niagara Falls plant for the
United States market, but American manufacturers continued to use white phosphorus based matches. The Niagara Falls plant stopped making it until
1910, when the
United States Congress forbid the shipment of white phosphorus matches in interstate commerce. At the same time the largest producer of matches in the USA granted free use, in the USA, of its phosphorus sesquisulfide safety match patents. In 1913 Albright and Wilson also started making red phosphorus at Niagara Falls.
Strike-anywhere matches are classed as
Dangerous goods, U.N. 1331, and are forbidden on
aircraft.
The development of a specialised
matchbook with both matches and a striking surface did not occur until
1890s with the American
Joshua Pusey who later sold his patent to the
Diamond Match Company. The Diamond Match Company was later bought by Bryant and May.
The hobby of collecting match-related items, such as
matchcovers and matchbox labels is called
phillumenism.
*The
Cocoanut Grove was a
nightclub in
Boston, Massachusetts. On
November 28,
1942, the nightclub burned in what remains the deadliest nightclub fire in
United States history, killing 492 people and injuring hundreds more. An artificial
palm tree caught fire when 16-year-old busboy
Stanley Tomaszewski struck a match for illumination while changing a
light bulb. The case was reopened in 1997, and it was determined that the flash fire was accelerated by methyl chloride leaking from a faulty refrigerator near the Melody Lounge.
*The
King's Cross fire was a devastating underground fire in
London on
November 18,
1987, which killed 31 people. It was caused by rubbish and grease beneath wooden
escalators being ignited, probably by a discarded match.
* Beaver, Patrick, (1985).
The Match Makers: The story of Bryant & May. London: Henry Melland Limited. ISBN 0-907929-11-7.
* Emsley, John, (2000).
The shocking history of Phosphorus: A Biography of the Devil's Element. Basingstoke: Macmillan Publishing. ISBN 0-333-76638-5.
* Threlfall, Richard E., (1951).
The story of 100 years of Phosphorus making: 1851 - 1951. Oldbury: Albright & Wilson Ltd.
*
Black match*
Ivar Kreuger*
Lighter*
London matchgirls strike of 1888*
Matchbook*
Matchcover*
phossy-jaw*
*
